WAVERLY - Allegations of sex discrimination initiated the investigation into Waverly Police Chief Larry Roe who struck a settlement agreement with village officials just before Christmas.

Roe, who was placed on leave in August, was facing possible termination on the grounds of 11 charges alleging inefficiency, incompetency, neglect of duty, dishonesty, misfeasance, and insubordination. A hearing on the charges levied in November was twice cancelled before a Dec. 19 meeting where council unanimously accepted a settlement with Roe.

"This is an outcome we know we can move forward from," Waverly Mayor Greg Kempton said.

The settlement

Roe agreed to be demoted to patrolman and to use his accrued paid time off - he had nearly 39 weeks as of the settlement - through June 1 when he can officially retire with 25 years of service. His rate of pay of $25.31 and benefits will remain unchanged.

At that rate, Roe's paid leave during the investigation totals about $16,000 and he will be paid $24,000 before he retires. Under typical circumstances, Roe would be paid for unused paid leave upon retirement, but he forfeited the payout in the settlement which means he won't get about $15,000 in accrued, unused paid time off.

Kempton said the settlement allows the situation to be settled now rather than dragging on in court due to expected appeals if council had agreed to fire Roe. Aside from the department being left in limbo with appeals, Kempton said it also would've cost the village more.There would have been a decent chance a termination would have been overturned and a different discipline meted out since Roe, according to his personnel file, had not been previously disciplined.

Chillicothe officials saw two chief terminations (one police, one fire) under former Mayor Jack Everson reversed during appeals due to issues related to progressive discipline. In the instance of the police chief, the process began with administrative leave for the investigation in July 2014 and it didn't come to a final resolution - which was a settlement - until December 2015.

Roe's settlement has a non-disparagement clause, notes it does not to be considered an admission of wrongdoing, and directs the village to essentially hide the settlement and any accompanying "public records" by placing them in a file separate from Roe's personnel file.

The allegations

The investigation into Roe began with an officer complaint alleging mistreatment. While it's not unusual to get complaints from time-to-time, Kempton said this complaint was quickly followed by "several" others related to administrative issues which, if true, he felt needed addressed.

As he began talking with people, Kempton said he felt there were "enough concerns and enough people" he needed to question that the probe would proceed more smoothly if Roe was placed on leave. He then tapped Columbus human resources law firm Clemans-Nelson to assist. Kempton did not immediately know how much the firm has been paid.

According to the six written statements made by police employees to Clemans-Nelson and obtained by the Gazette via a public records request, there were two main, consistent issues: Roe's alleged disdain of women in law enforcement and repeated use of the work schedule as a disciplinary tool against employees.

One male officer wrote, "He has also made comments about how we only hire females so we won't be sued for discrimination" while another employee noted such statements were "so common that I can not recall every conversation. It was just matter-of-fact, his belief."

Some also reported Roe refused to order uniforms designed to fit females, allegedly saying it wasn't a "fashion show," according to one officer's statement.

One female employee said she "felt it was like walking on egg shells everyday. The job is stressful, but nothing gave me more anxiety than knowing chief would be in the office all day," she wrote, alleging Roe was demeaning and could be verbally abusive.

Kempton was criticized during the Dec. 19 council meeting for allegedly stalling the investigation and planning to get Roe to retirement all along. Kempton refutes the allegation, saying the investigation took four months because it was exhaustive.

Kempton said he and Clemans-Nelson attempted to look into all allegations that were brought up including some which couldn't be substantiated or were alleged to have happened several years ago.

At the conclusion of the investigation, instead of a final report, Clemans-Nelson created the notice of charges against Roe, outlining what allegations they believed were substantiated.

In addition to the administrative concerns outlined by staff, the charges also alleged Roe had approved a time sheet for his son on a day he didn't work, had improperly deposited checks made out to the police department to the auxiliary fund, and didn't submit proper information to insurance related to a crash with a deer involving his son in a department vehicle.

Kempton told the Gazette he had consulted with a state auditor who was wrapping up the regular audit for 2017 about the financial-related issues. Kempton said he was told not to expect a finding for recovery since the issues were identified by the village and the amount related to the time card was only around $100.

While Pike County Prosecutor Rob Junk said he hasn't seen anything related to the Roe case, he had talked with Kempton and was satisfied knowing the state auditor's office had been consulted.

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What now?

With the issue of Roe's future with the department settled, Kempton said they can move forward with the search of a new police chief. He said he is in the process of putting together a committee of people, including some with extensive law enforcement experience, to assist in hiring a new chief.

"I want to get it done sooner than later, but I want to do it correctly," Kempton said.

Capt. Dennis Crabtree will continue as interim chief until a new chief is selected.

Kempton also is looking to re-establish a civil service commission to aid in human resource issues. The village does not have a human resources department and the civil service commission it's supposed to have according to the village's charter was dissolved several years ago, Kempton said.

Not having the commission also contributed to the investigation with Roe being somewhat delayed as they tried to determine how they needed to proceed, Kempton said.

"It would have made the procedure (with Roe) easier, definitely," Kempton said.